Movieman's Guide to the Movies
The Final Word on Physical Media
Best Laid Plans isn’t a great film but I suppose one could call it a gem of a crime-thriller. The movie is held up thanks in large part due to the performances from Alessandro Nivola and Reese Witherspoon as well as some slick writing by Ted Griffin.
Howl’s Moving Castle may not be considered one of Miyazaki’s greatest works but I enjoyed the movie for its splendid visuals, interesting storyline and well cast voice actors for both the Japanese and English-dubbed versions.
Lego Batman: The Movie – Super Heroes Unite has some good laughs and the stop-motion animation is well done, however if you’ve played the game, you’ve already seen the vast majority of the movie with only bits newly created to bridge the scenes together to make a coherent story.
Continue reading “Review: LEGO Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite BD + Screen Caps”
Beautiful Creatures is hardly a perfect fantasy movie but it did at least surpass my expectations thanks to the fact it’s a competently film that is way above anything the Twilight movies have done. The two leads are amazing and some of the visual effects are well done even if the story grows a tad thin for its two-hour running time.
National Lampoon’s Vacation is as funny as ever with a great cast, hilarious jokes and an all around fun storyline filled with a mix of low-brow and even, for the time, risqué humor.
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Safe Haven is an overwrought romance-drama that hits similar chords from the other Nicholas Sparks’ movie adaptations with a bit of a suspense wrinkle thrown in. Even taking the romantic angle aside, the movie is very predictable.
there’s plenty to dislike about Parker from the one-dimensional characters, lame plot and a star that doesn’t seem able to branch out more. Sure, the main character is interesting given he is not the wholesome hero audiences are used to but even then it’s been done before.
Iron Man 3 is hardly the perfect comic book movie and while it certainly was better than its predecessor, which was more of a prequel to The Avengers, it didn’t quite meet the standards of the first movie. Even so, Downey Jr. once again hits it out of the park and the plot itself, albeit simple, was engaging enough. I wasn’t overly thrilled with the villains although Kingsley and Pearce give it their all. Iron Man 3 is a fun, entertaining film perfect to kick off the theatrical summer season.
Experimental film or not, Full Frontal was awful not because of the storyline, or the lack thereof, but it was downright dull and boring, a chore to get through. Steven Soderbergh wanted to do this movie as a counter product to the Hollywood system but while he flipped the bird to the studios, he also managed to do the same with audiences. I found nothing about the film or the characters engaging.
The Hoax is a well made docu-drama/comedy with strong performances from Richard Gere and Alfred Molina. The story is interesting and mostly unknown making for a gripping drama on the whole.
“Star Trek: The Next Generation” Season Three is a fantastic entry into the “Trek” universe with masterful storytelling, excellent character development and solid performances from the main cast… yes, even Wil Wheaton’s Crusher wasn’t as annoying as he had been the season before. The season featured some incredible episodes headlined by ‘Best of Both Worlds Part 1’.
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Teaching Mrs. Tingle was never my favorite film but with some biting dialogue and an amazing performance from Helen Mirren, challenging Meryl Streep in The Devil Wars Prada, this teen dark comedy has gathered a following over the years, far more than when it was released back in 1999.
Noon and Shanghai Knights are both fun movies if not a bit forgettable even with Jackie Chan’s amazing fight sequences and stunt work. Even so, as buddy comedies go, Chan and Owen Wilson share good chemistry making both film a breeze to watch on a slow Saturday afternoon.
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Broken City had so much potential with a stellar cast and an interesting foxhe, unfortunately it never really came together. The plot itself was convoluted and the performances kind of bland although slightly entertaining, leading to an all around forgettable flick. I’m not sure what happened, if it was with the script or while filming, but this should’ve been so much better.
Overall, I suppose if you have nothing better to watch on a Saturday night, you certainly could to worse than The Guilt Trip, plus if you’re a fan of either Rogen or Streisand, you might enjoy a bit more than I did. In the end, the movie does contain a couple of laughs and the pairing of the two stars was well done, but the script fails.